The present invention relates to a support for photographic materials which comprises a base paper containing titanium oxide covered with a specific metal oxide, said base paper being coated with a resin on both sides, and more particularly to a support for photographic materials prevented from staining of edge portion which is caused by permeation of a development processing solution (hereinafter referred to as "developing solution") from cut sections of edge portions of a support.
Hitherto, so-called baryta paper comprising a paper coated with a baryta layer mainly composed of barium sulfate on one side has been used as a support for photographic materials. Recently, a waterproofed support made by coating both sides of a base paper with a resin has been used for automatic and high-speed development. However, even such waterproofed support cannot prevent permeation of developing solution from the cut section of edge portion. The developing solution permeating from the cut section of edge portion cannot be removed by a short-time photographic treatment and turns brown with heat or time, resulting in stain of edge portion of photographs and damaging the value as photograph. In order to prevent the staining of edge portion, it has been attempted to impart high sizing property to the base paper.
A sizing agent of fatty acid type as disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokoku No. 47-26961 and alkyl ketene dimers as disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokai No. 51-132822 have been used as sizing agent for photographic base paper. However, these have respective defects and are still not satisfactory. That is, the fatty acid soap type sizing agent suffers from the problems that it is low in sizing effect against the alkali in developing solution and susceptible to the effect of hardness of water used in preparation of base paper. On the other hand, the alkyl ketene dimers have the problems that they are low in sizing effect against the alcohol in the developing solution and besides cannot provide sufficient sizing property unless a polyamide-polyamine epichlorohydrin resin known as a fixing agent is used in a relatively large amount. Thus, none of these sizing agents are fully satisfactory for base paper for photographic materials. Japanese Patent Kokai No. 58-80637 proposes a method for preventing staining of edge portion by impregnating a base paper with a specific polyvinyl alcohol and a divalent metal salt or coating them on the base paper. However, this method is also not satisfactory.